Dead Souls
by Tabloid
Summary: "The bar used to be a high-strung hang out for the rich, the privileged and the cherished. Now the only people who walk though the doors are the impoverished, the unloved- the dead souls." "MacKenna's Brewery had age-old secrets..."
1. Prologue

Title: Dead Souls Author: Tabloid Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Newsies. Raven belongs to Raven, and Jackal belongs to Jackal. I own Oracle.  
  
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The sign above the door reads MacKenna's Brewery, the name unchanged after two-hundred years. The bar used to be a high-strung hang out for the rich, the privileged and the cherished. Now the only people who walk though the doors are the impoverished, the unloved- the dead souls.  
  
You walk in and the bar is directly across from the door. The dark haired girl with the black eyes serving up the drinks is Raven. She's worked here for only a couple of weeks- the new girl on town. She's Jack Kelly's girl, and he's the brewery's best patron so she got hired immediately. No worries, though, she fits in just fine.  
  
To the left is Enchanted. Her bright red hair clashes with the drab, dreary environment, but she's worked here forever, along with Oracle Donovan and Jackal Turner, who are washing the tables on the left, waiting for the evening crowd. Oracle's the easiest girl you'll ever find- more often then not she's out on the floor for only half her shift, the rest of the time's spent in the closet or the back room with one man or another. Jackal's her elusive counterpart and best friend. The girl has issues, but it all falls into the scheme of things in this little corner of the universe.  
  
In the center of the establishment is the piano, and the bar's prize- musician- the only place he's prized- is Snoddy Baxter. Yeah Snoddy. Trust me, you don't want to know.  
  
MacKenna's has two security guards- the one-eyed Kid Blink Ballet and Mush Myers. The blackjack and poker tables in the corner are run by Racetrack Higgins, an esteemed gamblet himself. The bar also houses two chefs known as Dutchy and Specs, who make world-class food in a small, practically unknown bar in New York. Like everyone else here, they deserve to be in a better place, and they could go far. But Fate has a twisted sense of humor- she stuck them all here and will keep them here forever.  
  
The workers and the customers of the Brewery are always the same- rarely does someone new come in. Raven had been a customer long before a worker, so the change was seen ahead of time by the boss, and seen to be inevitable.  
  
But it was time a new person came in.  
  
And this was not a good thing.  
  
MacKenna's Brewery had age-old secrets. Things that no one else could ever know,  
  
But a new perspective, well, that would only ruin things.  
  
You see, the people of MacKenna's Brewery didn't like to see certain things, and new people gave them an eye-opener.  
  
And they don't like that.  
  
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Hmmm.I got SO many good ideas for this-well, okay I've got one, but it's a doozy. Hehe. Well tell me what you think of it and all that good stuff. Don't worry there's gonna be a lot more Newsies in here, just they're customers and, well, I didn't think that would be interesting "You see that guy over there? That's Spot and he comes here a lot. And that guy over there? That's Bumlets and he comes here a lot. And Jack comes here a lot and Pie comes here a lot and Skittery comes here a lot and Jake comes here a lot and-" you see? I just say this caue my friend got mad at me "WHERE'S SPOT??? AHHHH!!" and then she ate my Gobstoppers to get back at me and I was sad. Anyway I'm gonna take somewhere between two and four characters, so send them to me VIA e-mail preferably but whatever. Either Fea Uf Este@aol.com or ARTsyGrlFRotW@aol.com. *looks at screennames* Damn, I gotta change these. Anway send me the characters and I'll love you forever!  
  
Tabloid 


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own newsies. Damn it all.  
  
A/N: From here on it's the POV of the new girl, who's one of my characters. Oh, and I also want to say that I'm a lying bitch and I'm taking pretty much anyone who wants to be in it. Woo. Until the 18th. Cause then I'm going on vacay and I'll be writing a lot, and I won't be able to check e- mail for any bios. Oh, yeah and this fic was inspired by Piano Man and one of Lois Duncan's books. I shall not tell because it will give away my doozy. Hehehe doozy.  
  
Ravy, I'm not an idiot.okay maybe I am a little! I could have sworn I uploaded this chapter before, though!  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
I had been warned when I started this job that it may take my new co- workers a little while to warm up to me. I had also been told that they would be a little surprised when I walked in.  
  
That taught me that authority figures often scale events down so they become something that could be thought of as- oh what is it again? Oh yeah. A blatant lie.  
  
When I walked through the door of MacKenna's Brewery, the entire establishment fell silent. They all sat wearing their strange turn-of-the century clothes, frozen while playing cards, drinking or delivering drinks. One girl even dropped her tray, barely even noticing the shattered glass and alcohol that was now strewn across the floor- making quite a beautiful design, I may add.  
  
So now I stand here, at least thirty pairs of eyes either glaring at me like I bring the plague or staring as if I had sprouted three heads and proceeded to do the Macarena. And all I could do was squeak a small "Hi."  
  
I didn't get a reply, so I continued. "Uh...um... I'm supposed to be working here?" I said, my tone making it a question.  
  
A dark-haired girl behind the bar spoke up. "You'd have to talk to our floor manager."  
  
I waited for a second, but she didn't say anything else. "Well, uh, who's the floor manager?" I asked, shooting a nervous glance at a short, brown haired girl on my left who was eyeing me in a way that gave me the feeling she was mentally taking measurements for my coffin.  
  
The bartender sighed. "Lute!" she shouted towards the back. "Lute, get up here!"  
  
"What do you want, Raven?" A rather stocky girl with short brown hair walks out the back. Her perfect posture makes me shift my weight from my usual slouch.  
  
"Person." Raven replied, practically glaring at me through black eyes.  
  
"Calm down, kid." Lute says, slapping the bar counter as she walks by. "Everybody, get back to what you were doing. It's just a human. "  
  
A red haired girl rolls her eyes, and grabs a tray of drinks. At her movement everyone else goes back to what they were doing, minus that psycho girl who's STILL glaring at me.  
  
"Shamrock, clean up that mess you made." Lute ordered as she stopped in front of me. She looked at me for a moment, calculating, then extended her hand. "I'm Lute McDonaghey."  
  
"Watch out, Lute. You don't know where that's been."  
  
Ah, psycho girl finally speaks.  
  
"Oracle, be nice."  
  
The girl glared at me and Lute in turn, then muttered "I'm always nice."  
  
Lute just shook her head as Oracle walked away. "She's probably the worst one you'll have to deal with here. She's not good around new people."  
  
"Yeah. I figured."  
  
"So who are you, anyway?" Lute asks me, walking around the bar, grabbing a jar of whisky and pouring herself a shot.  
  
"Kyle Burke." I say, my name pronounced Kay-lee.  
  
Lute frowns. "How do you spell that?"  
  
"K-y-l-e."  
  
"Isn't that a boy's name?"  
  
"Only if you want on my bad side." I growl. She ignores the threat in my answer.  
  
"Anyway, kid, what are you doing here?"  
  
I blinked at her. "Uh...I've been hired for a job."  
  
"Yeah. So you've told me." She says, slightly annoyed. "But what is your job?"  
  
"She was probably hired to show us what freaks we really are." Raven grumbles from where she was pouring a glass of bourbon for an Asian guy sitting at the bar.  
  
"We're not freaks." he said. "Well, at least I'm not. Can't say that about you, Raven." he grinned as Raven muttered obscene comments under her breath and turned her attention to another customer.  
  
"Sure." A blonde said, shooting me a look as she grabbed a martini. "Enjoy your delusions, boy."  
  
Lute nodded towards them. "Swifty and Jackal." she said. "Jackal's best friends with your new buddy Oracle, and Swifty...well, he knows her well, too."  
  
Swifty grinned at this as Lute shook her head slowly.  
  
"So you gonna answer my question, kid, or do I have to guess?" Lute asked, drinking down her second shot.  
  
"I'm serving tables." I responded quickly.  
  
Lute cocked an eyebrow. "We already have enough girls serving tables." she gestured around the room towards about seven other girls. "And that's not even all of them."  
  
"I'm telling you, Lute, she's another one of Pultizer's lessons." Swifty said. "Your boss has a twisted sense of humor."  
  
Lute ignored him. "Girls! Come here!" she bellowed out to the room. The waitresses all filed over. "Where'd Oracle go?" she asked after surveying the small crowd.  
  
"She went in the back with Snoddy or Pie or someone like that." Jackal said non-chalantly.  
  
Lute shook her head. "Don't know what we're gonna do with that girl." she muttered.  
  
"Anyway," she said loudly. "Girls, this here is Kyle Burke." She pointed to a girl with short blonde hair and glasses. "That's Books Stelzerrn." Next was a tall brown-haired girl with blue eyes and a necklace with a clover or something on it. I failed my horticulture class last year, I might add. "She's Shamrock." Lute nodded towards a girl with curly blonde hair that was even shorter than Oracle. "Wild Card Baglee" And finally there was a tan girl with brown hair, who was introduced as Demon. The only demons I know, though, are my neighbor's tabby cat and Sociopath Oracle and I'm not too sure on the latter. She may just be a nutcase. Her friend, Jackal, stood with us too, and I shifted my weight as she gave me a look.  
  
"Wait. Where's Enchanted?"  
  
Books sighed. "She's off. Her shift ended about." She checked the clock on the wall, squinting to read it in the near darkness. "Forty seconds ago."  
  
Lute sighed. "That's the only thing the girl's on time for."  
  
I watched Oracle side up to the small crowd, taking a spot next to Jackal. Lute's eyes narrowed in on her.  
  
"What?" She asked, an innocent expression on her face. "I was here the entire time!"  
  
"Right." Lute said at the same time Jackal asked "Who was it?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Jackal rolled her eyes at her friend. "You know. Who was it?"  
  
A small smile broke out on Oracle's face. "Snoddy."  
  
Jackal let out a whoop of mirth. "Pay up, Demon", she said, holding out her palm. Demon sighed and slapped a pile of bills into the blonde's hand.  
  
Oracle frowned. "You bettin' on me?"  
  
"Yup." The two girls said simultaneously.  
  
"I feel violated." Oracle quipped. A couple girls chuckled at the apparent (to them) irony of the statement, but when I joined them, Oracle's gray eyes narrowed in on me like a sniper's.  
  
"You're still here."  
  
"I work here."  
  
"Since when?" Damn, would that girl ever stop glaring at me?  
  
"Since today."  
  
"I don't like you."  
  
I shrugged. "Frankly, missy, I don't give a damn."  
  
Oracle cocked an eyebrow. "Fair enou-" she stopped when notes came from the piano. We all turned towards the sound, to where a tall, dark-haired young man sat at the piano. There were some intro chords, then he began to sing.  
  
"Trapped in time; lose your faith,  
  
Don't bother to find what fate misplaced  
  
Stolen life; erased dreams  
  
Immortality ain't all it seems  
  
Cursed gifts  
  
Twist of fate  
  
Gold fades to iron  
  
Treasured no more  
  
Luck falls-  
  
Death's lost-"  
  
Lute's attention swerved away from Snoddy's one man show. She waved her hand, motioning for me to follow her. She led me to the back of the building, opening a door to reveal a staircase. I trudged up the narrow stairs, and when we reached the landing at the top, she began to talk again.  
  
"Kyle, your room's at the end of the hall." She said, walking down and opening said door. "Smartass, get the hell up, your shift started two minutes ago."  
  
I walked in, and my eyes widened as I beheld a room with oak floors, oak furniture and velvet canopy beds.  
  
"Lemme alone." , something that appears to be a pile of light brown hair grumbles.  
  
Lute walks over and hits her with a pillow. "Avani Matterazzo, get the hell out of bed."  
  
"Fine, mother." The girl sat up, rubbing her eyes.  
  
"Smartass, this is your new roommate, Kyle."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Kyle. K-y-l-e."  
  
"Isn't that a boy's name?"  
  
"Yes." I said dryly. "Yes, it's a boy's name and I'm a drag queen but shush, don't tell anyone 'cause it's a secret."  
  
Smartass glared at me. "No need to get fresh, it was an innocent question."  
  
Lute snorted, and Smartass grinned.  
  
"Well, I-"  
  
She was interrupted by a loud bag coming from the hallway. Smartass's grin widened. "It's probably Oracle again."  
  
"Pervert!" Oracle's voice came from outside.  
  
Lute shook her head and opened the door, revealing Oracle and Jackal attempting to drag an unconscious boy down the hall.  
  
Oracle was bent over his head, examining a bruise forming on his forehead. "I think you broke him."  
  
"I didn't break him! And it was your fault!"  
  
"No it wasn't! It was your fault! You dropped him!"  
  
Lute crossed her arms. "What the hell did you two do to Spot?"  
  
"We didn't do anything to him! He got drunk and passed out." Jackal protested.  
  
Oracle shook her head slowly, looking at Spot fondly. "Stupid boy can't take care of himself."  
  
Lute stared down at them. "So you're dragging an unconscious Spot Conlon down the hall to your bedroom?"  
  
Oracle shrugged. "You put it that way and it sounds dirty."  
  
Lute shook her head. "Come on, kid, we're going back downstairs. Snoddy's done, right?" she said, addressing the last part back to Oracle and Jackal.  
  
"Yup." Jackal said.  
  
"Fun." Oracle agreed, grunting as she lifted Spot's shoulders. "Grab his legs, Jackal."  
  
She stood and came eye- to-eye with me as I crept out the bedroom door.  
  
"You livin' here, too?"  
  
Lute butted into the conversation before I could respond. "Everyone lives here, Oracle."  
  
"But she isn't one of us." Oracle growled, glaring at me.  
  
I glared back. "Why would I want to be one of you? Especially with yourself as a prime example?"  
  
Oracle frowned, her face drawn blank. "Huh?"  
  
Lute snorted. "You can't use big words while insulting Oracle. It doesn't work. Especially if she's drunk."  
  
Lute ushered me down the stairs before Oracle could say anything else.  
  
"Get one of the trays on the bar and bring it to whatever table it belongs to. The tables are numbered, and there should be a matching number on the tray."  
  
I stood in the middle of the floor, eyes wide.  
  
"Well?" Lute snapped. "What are you waiting for, kiddo, go serve drinks. That's what your paid to do."  
  
I swallowed and grabbed a tray.  
  
"Here I go." I muttered. God, I hope no one kills me.  
  
These people are psycho.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Wheee.Couldn't end the story so I just threw that on.makes me angry but I got ideas for the next chappie. Woo. Anyways, here I go. Klover owns Shamrock, Thumbsucker Snitch owns Lute, uh Demon owns Demon, Wild Card owns Wild Card, Raven owns Raven, Jackal owns Jackal, Artimis-chan owns Books, Katie owns Enchanted, SmartassLeprechaun owns Smartass. Hmm I'm pretty sure that's it so far but if I missed anyone I'm sorry and I'll say ya next chapter. Woo.  
  
If I did your character wrong, just talk to me about it and I'll fix it, Okie day? Okie day.WOO I'm hyper. WHEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeee. *dances around*  
  
Okie Dokie I gotta do some shoutouts caue I have no life and I'm putting off cleaning my room cause I think something dies in there O.o  
  
DemonBlood: Thankies. I like the title too, fun fun. It comes more into play later.woooooOOooo.  
  
Raven: I'm just gonna shake my head and sigh. *shakes head* *sighs*  
  
Polecat: Wheee yeah I'm all out of Gobestoppers, and it makes me REALLY REALLY sad. Really sad. Maybe I'll just bribe you to read more by tempting you with the 'stoppers. 


	3. Chapter 2

Shoutouts:  
  
Artimis-chan: Well, here's some more! That didn't take long, now did it. Ha, yeah right, I'm bad.  
  
Phoenix: award winning? Please. Yeah I had gotten your bio, but I didn't until after I had attempted to put the first one up, and then i forgot to mention it. Sorry. ^_^ I think you're the only one who knows Dutchy's the very cutest...nah, jk. He IS cute, one of the best, but I must disagree that hie is THE best... ^_^  
  
Klover: Haha, I hope it's so you. ^_^ Totally what I'm aiming for...  
  
Polecat: Hehe I haven't updated recently, but I will do MUCH moe updating. Much more. Woo for vacay! *holds up CaribBLOOM* Isn't he adorbale? I almost got a CaribDEPP, but he runs too fast...  
  
Stage: There's absolutely NOTHING better than cazy randomness with Newsies. Well, actually- no. I won't go there  
  
Wild Card: Yay. More updates...though bad Tab for not updating sooner! *slaps hand* bad Tab! Dark is FUUUUNNN.  
  
Deanie: Nah, Ky's in good ol' 2003 New York... thanks for showing me I had to work on making it more clear, though.  
  
DemonBlood: Woo, glad you liked. Well, you don't have to wait anymore..  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, nor do I own more than half of the characters in this story. Hehehe, kinda pathetic, eh? *glares jokingly* Say yes, and I'll sic Psycho Pie on you.  
  
Psycho Pie: Grrr.  
  
Good boy.  
  
A/N: Just so that you know, this is in PRESENT TIME. Wheeeeeee.*loves capital letters* So. Hyper.  
  
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I walked up to the table indicated on the tray. "Uhm.who ordered the gin?"  
  
I was met with silence and glares.  
  
"Anyone?" I managed to squeak out.  
  
More glares. These people need some serious happy pills.  
  
I rechecked the numbers. Seven on the table, seven on the tray.  
  
"No one ordered gin?" I asked, my face growing red.  
  
A short burst of laughter came from the bar. Demon was hunched over, smothering her laughter. Raven was laughing outright, not even bothering to hide it.  
  
Have I mentioned how much I love these people?  
  
"What?" I asked, glaring at Raven.  
  
"Nothing." The dark eyed girl laughed.  
  
I turned to Demon. "Us?" the tan girl squeaked. "Why do you think we did anything?"  
  
Demon managed to keep a straight face until her eyes met Raven's. The girls burst into another round of giggles.  
  
I bit the side of my cheek.  
  
Ignore urge to hang them on my dashboard like fuzzy dice. Ignore urge to hang them on my dashboard like fuzzy dice. Ignore urge- oh, fuck it.  
  
I started to storm over to them, still clutching the tray. I would have beamed Raven with it if this chestnut-haired girl hadn't gotten in my way.  
  
She grabbed my shoulders and turned me around. "Alright, Kyle, calm down. It's not worth it-" the girl shot a glare towards the twin terrors. "It was a childish trick."  
  
Demon put a hand over her heart, tears forming in her eyes. "That hurts, Sweets." She cracked up again.  
  
Sweets ignored her. "The table those belong to is 4."  
  
I looked at her warily. She sighed.  
  
"Fine, I'll prove it to you." She grabbed the tray from my hands and walked assuredly to said table.  
  
"Skittery- gin, right?" A brown-haired guy nodded, and Sweets handed over the troublesome drink.  
  
"Jack- bourbon." The addressed guy took the drink with a thanks.  
  
"The beer's mine." A curly-haired boy said.  
  
"Duh, David. I think you're the only one here that only drinks beer. Every night. Over and over day after day, week after week, month after month-" Sweets responded good-naturedly.  
  
Jack laughed. "You're boring, Dave."  
  
David shrugged, and the guys resumed their conversation.  
  
Sweets turned away from the table, heading back to the bar.  
  
I give up trying to understand them. You can't understand lunatics. It's a law of nature or something like that.  
  
I walk up to the bar to grab another tray.  
  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A girl with long, curly brown hair is sitting at the bar, looking at the tray.  
  
"Why the hell not?"  
  
The girl sighed, grabbed a napkin and wiped it along the edge of the tray. She showed me the napkin, which had something that looked like.shit on it.  
  
"Jackal's got a cat." She explained.  
  
I threw my hands up in the air. "I give up. I fucking give this all up."  
  
She shrugged. "Then they'd win." She leveled her blue-green eyes at me. "If there's one thing that annoys me, it's a gloating Oracle."  
  
"Then what am I supposed to do? Did I break some sort of cardinal law when I walked in?" I looked down at my kapris and peasant blouse, then at the girl's long skirt and white blouse. "Besides whatever dress code you people have."  
  
"It's our boss's fault. Pulitzer's a nutcase." The girl explained. "And you didn't break any rules. You're just-" she shrugged again, lost for words. "You're just not one of us."  
  
"One of you, one of you." I snarled. "That's all I hear. 'She's not one of us' 'You're not one of us'. Is this some sort of all inclusive cult or something?"  
  
She laughed. "Nah, we've just been together forever. Through a lot of things. We're family."  
  
I glare at the tray in front of me as she goes on. "Just ignore them. They'll get tired of it in a while."  
  
I snort as she walks away. "Yeah, I just hope I'm not dead and rotting before that happens."  
  
I grab another tray- right after Raven sets it down, and carry it over to the table. It was the right table this time, so I could turn and get another tray.  
  
I stopped dead still as a black cat walked across my path. It stopped shortly, then leveled it's green eyes at me.  
  
"Jackal! Get your cat out of here! How many times do I have to tell you he's not allowed!?" Lute yelled. The blonde scampered over and swept the cat into her arms. She paused and they both surveyed me with nearly identically colored green eyes.  
  
Jackal grinned. "It's just a cat, kid." She laughed.  
  
"What?" The blond, one-eyed security guard yelled to her.  
  
"I wasn't talking to you, Blink!" she called back, running over to the door and back up the stairs, cat in tow. God, does that girl ever just walk?  
  
I watched Jackal disappear into the dark hallway. Stupid cat. I hate cats. I loathe them entirely. I despise-  
  
"Hey, calm down." The curly-haired girl was back again.  
  
I blinked. "Huh?"  
  
"The cat thing." She explained. "What, are you superstitious or something?"  
  
"No." I shuddered. "I just hate cats. And I didn't know I was talking out loud."  
  
"That's something you have to fix." She said, pointing at me. "You don't want to talk aloud and not realize it."  
  
Something registered behind her blueish eyes, and she held out her hand. "By the way, I'm Deanie."  
  
I shook her hand. "Kyle. But you know that." My eyes move from person to person. "You all know that."  
  
I looked at her again. "Do you know that every last one of you is completely mental?'  
  
She laughed. "Yeah, it gets like that when you're stuck with the same people as long as we've been."  
  
"Aw, come on, Deanie!" Skittery shouted from across the room. "You know you love us."  
  
Deanie just waved a hand at him. "Loser." She accused.  
  
"Nuh-uh!"  
  
"Infant."  
  
"Now, that hurts."  
  
"I-" Deanie was cut off as Oracle trudged down the stairs.  
  
"Guuuuuys" she moaned. "I'm bored."  
  
A guy across the room shrugged. "Why don't you bitch at the new girl?"  
  
I shoot the guy a look, and he just shrugs.  
  
"No." Oracle sighed. "I already did that, and I'm saving something really great for tomorrow."  
  
"Fun." I said dryly.  
  
"Shuddup." Oracle snapped. "It's late, and you cease to amuse me at this hour."  
  
"Dude." I gawked at her. "It's nine o' clock."  
  
She made a face. "Dude!" she said in a high pitched voice. "Pie, dude, what's up? Swifty, dude!" she added, walking aimlessly around the main room. "Dude! DUDE! Duuuuuuuude."  
  
Lute glared at me. "You had to say dude, didn't you?"  
  
"Trust me." I said, leveling my gaze at the back of Oracle's head as she strutted about the room. "I'll never say it again."  
  
"Damn straight, dude!" Oracle called to me, false cheerfulness in her voice as she strode towards the bar, heading for another tray.  
  
"Psychotic whore." I muttered to myself as I turned to walk away.  
  
"Damned bitch." Oracle shot back. I didn't even turn back to glare at her. It wasn't worth it.  
  
"Stupid bastard." I snapped anyway as I began to stalk away.  
  
Something heavy connected with the back of my head, a liquid poured down my back and over my shoulders, and I fell into a peaceful darkness. 


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, nor do I own Smartass, Ruin Bailey, Lute, Raven, Books or Stage. I own Oracle though. And (groan) Kyle. That's all. Very sad. Very pathetic.  
  
Psycho Pie: yes. Very.  
  
Quiet, boy!  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"I think you killed 'er."  
  
"I didn't kill her, I just hurt her a little...WAKE UP!"  
  
Something painful jabbed into my side.  
  
"Oracle, you just broke a fucking glass on the back of her head. She really doesn't need to be squewered by a fork."  
  
I groaned and brought my shaking hand to the back of my head.  
  
"See?" Oracle's voice cut harshly through the air. "She's alive. Happy, Dutchy?"  
  
"Estatic." her companion retorted.  
  
I waited to open my eyes until I heard Oracle's footsteps retreating. "Who're you?"  
  
"Dutchy. I'm a cook. You've been out of it for a while, kid."  
  
"Cook, fun." I blinked. "Who's your twin?"  
  
Dutchy arched a blond eyebrow. "You should go lie down."  
  
"I am lying down...er I think." I looked around, trying to focus despite how wildly the room was spinning. "Yup, definitely lying down."  
  
"I meant-" Dutchy was cut off by a loud bang echoing through the bar. He swore as everyone scrambled around, putting things in their place and changing to pleasant conversations. Dutchy yanked me to my feet and shoved me onto the bar stool, catching me again before I fell off the other side. I moaned in protest and he apologized quickly as Raven shoved him a drink and a door I never noticed before slammed open.  
  
A fat old man with a look of contempt walked out, glaring at each of us in turn.  
  
"Where's Oracle Donovan?" he growled.  
  
"Did I do somethin', Mr. Weisel?" Oracle asked in a sugary voice.  
  
"Don't play sweet, Oracle. Mr. Pulitzer sees everything that goes on in here." Mr. Weisel said threateningly.  
  
A loud voice came from the gambling tabled. "That's not gonna have the effect you were lookin' for, Weasel, 'cause we saw you put up those security cameras last week."  
  
"Shut up, Higgins."  
  
"Stupid rodent." a voice came from the center of the room.  
  
"Who said that?!" Weasel snapped.  
  
No one answered, though I caught sight of Smartass and two other girls I couldn't identify from where I was sitting busy failing miserably at keeping straight faces. Weasel caught sight of them, too.  
  
"Smartass! Raven! Wild Card! You're coming with us too!"  
  
"Us? Who's us?" Oracle asked, confused.  
  
"Me an' you." Weasel growled.  
  
"Me? Since when am I going anywhere with you?"  
  
"Since I came down here to get you."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because you threw a mug of beer at Kyle!"  
  
"Oh, that!" Oracle laughed. "That wasn't me."  
  
"Yes it was." Weasel growled, face slowly growing red.  
  
"No, it was me!" Raven yelled, laughing.  
  
"Or me!" Demon added.  
  
"Me!" Dutchy yelled.  
  
"No, it was my cat!" Jackal cried out. "The damn thing's high on too much catnip!"  
  
"Sorry 'bout that." A guy put in, grinning maniacally.  
  
"Not a problem, Pie."  
  
"It was Oracle. I saw it on the tape."  
  
"You sure you saw what you think you saw?" A guy I recognized as Spot said with quiet authority. I could see this guy being a mobster...totally a "Soprano' thing going on.  
  
"Too much time locked up in that little room." He continued. "It's sure to go to your head."  
  
"Weasel's a nutcase!" Oracle crowed.  
  
Weasel growled, grabbed Oracle by the wrist and shoved them through the door ad up the stairs. As soon as the door shut, the room burst into laugher.  
  
Dutchy stifled his laughter after a moment, and turned back to me.  
  
"How ya doin'?"  
  
"The room stopped spinning."  
  
He shrugged. "Sounds like an improvement."  
  
I just groaned and laid my head down at the bar.  
  
Forty minutes. It's only been forty minutes.  
  
I'm not gonna make it out of here alive. Forget my sanity being spared.  
  
"Here. Have something to drink."  
  
I raised my eyes to see a new bartender.  
  
"You're not Raven."  
  
"Nah." She shook her head, tossing her black curls. "I'm Juliet Haven."  
  
"So you're not Raven." I said slowly.  
  
"Just drink it, kid." She said, walking away.  
  
I shrugged and drowned the glass. I shook my head slowly to clear it, muttering "My mother's probably rolling over in her grave."  
  
"Your mother's dead? Your father dead, too?" Dutchy asked, suddenly curious.  
  
"Yup."  
  
He nodded slowly.. "So're mine. Died when I was seven. You?"  
  
"Just last year. I've been wandering since then."  
  
Dutchy nodded again. "Most of us were wanderers before we met each other. Some of us were wanderers until we found this place. MacKenna's. A strange sorta haven, isn't it?"  
  
"Yeah. Strange." Haven? What the hell was this boy smoking? "'Ey, Dutchy?"  
  
"Uh-huh?"  
  
"How old are you? You don't seem old enough to work and drink at a bar."  
  
Dutchy laughed, his eyes shining behind his glasses- the first time I've seen any eyes shining in this god-forsaken place.  
  
"I'm older than you'd think."  
  
"Like, what, twenty?"  
  
He nodded. "Yeah, somewhere around there."  
  
"What is it with you people and answering questions?" I rolled my eyes.  
  
"Dutch."  
  
A voice so quiet that I barely heard it said my companion's name quietly.  
  
"Specs needs you back in the kitchen. Something about something burning."  
  
"Ah, shit!" He exclaimed, leaping off his stool and racing to the kitchen.  
  
A small girl leveled her blue eyes at me, then turned and walked away.  
  
Another girl wearing a black fedora on her wavy, waist length hair plopped down in the seat Dutchy just vacated.  
  
"Ruin Bailey." She said, nodding her head in the direction the girl had just run off in.  
  
"I'm Stage." She added as an afterthought, extending her hand.  
  
"You work here, too?"  
  
"Nah, just a customer- hey, Jules, gimme a scotch."  
  
"'Kay."  
  
Jules quickly poured a shot of scotch. Stage drowned it, and smacked the glass back on the bar.  
  
"Hey! Roll call, people, we have a newbie!"  
  
"A newsie?" Jack asked, his attention snapping to listen to Stage.  
  
"No, a newbie, you idiot."  
  
"We don't wanna play school house, Stage." A voice said.  
  
"FINE! I'll introduce you all." She said cheerily.  
  
"Please don't."  
  
"That-' Stage started. "Is Racetrack Higgins. Around the table is Nikola- er, Skittery, Pie Eater, Snitch and Books- Aren't you supposed to be working?"  
  
Books shrugged. "Supposed ta." She muttered and turned her attention back to the game.  
  
"Books! Get to work! We're missing three! You have to help out!" Lute barked, causing Books to leap to her feet and come running over to the bar to grab a tray.  
  
"You met all the staff, right?" Stage asked.  
  
"Yeah." I nodded. "At least, most of them."  
  
"You, your head, you know, feeling better?"  
  
"A bit."  
  
"Good." She said, and continued pointing out guys around the room. "Jack Kelly, david Jacobs, Spot Conlon, Jake, Swifty-"  
  
"I met most of those guys. 'Cept Jake."  
  
'Yeah, well, don't expect him to come up and introduce himself."  
  
"He stuck up?"  
  
"Nah. Just shy." She said. "His friend's Itey, Bumlets is sitting at the table too, he's the Hispanic guy."  
  
"Mush 'n Kid Blink are the security guards.Snoddy plays the piano, don't know where that boys is. And Specs and Dutchy are in the kitchen. They're ALWAYS in the kitchen. Er, I think that' sit." A sad tone overtook her cheery one. "There used to be more of us. Tabloid Guarrani. Obituary O'Ryan. Snipeshooter. Smalltalk Connors. Boots."  
  
"Where are they?'  
  
"Dead. All of them."  
  
"All of them?"  
  
"Every last one."  
  
"God, everyone you know's dead, aren't they?"  
  
Stage nodded. "Pretty much." She lowered her voice, looking around the room cautiously.  
  
"You know Oracle?" She didn't wait for an answer. "She had a baby before. A little girl, named Renata or something like that- it meant 'rebirth', I remember. Anyway, she died a couple years back. Oracle wasn't so, er, for lack of a better word bitchy before, but."  
  
"Kyle, you feeling better, kid?" Lute cuts into the conversation, sending a look at Stage, who stalks off guiltily.  
  
"Yeah, I guess."  
  
"Can you work?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Then do it, Kid.'  
  
I slid out off the stool, and grabbed a tray, then returned to work.  
  
-------------  
  
Three hours later, I was still serving. I had just delivered the drinks to Pie Eater, Snoddy and Swifty when Lute called my name  
  
"Hey, Kyle!"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Your shift's over. Congratulations. You're not dead."  
  
"But not for lack of people trying." I muttered to myself.  
  
"Finish up, then you can go to your room and rest, okay?"  
  
"Alright."  
  
Lute disappeared, grabbing Oracle's arm and dragging her out of the room.  
  
I put the tray back and walked towards the stairs. Lute's and Oracle's voices stopped me though.  
  
"What did Pulitzer say, Oracle?" I leaned against the door to hear better.  
  
"He said I gotta be good, or else he'd kick me out."  
  
"Oracle-"  
  
"Relax, Lute, he can't kick me out. We can't-"  
  
"Oracle, quiet!" Lute snapped, and they both lowered their voices.  
  
"Watch yourself, kid, or else-" Lute stopped talking, and yanked the door open. I fell to the floor, and looked up cautiously to see a furious Lute and Oracle.  
  
"Er, uh, this isn't the bathroom?" I stuttered. "Oh, well, then I'll just-"  
  
"Goodnight, Kyle." Lute growled. Damn, I didn't know that girl had such a mean streak.  
  
"'Night." I whimpered, and raced up the stairs.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
WOO! Guess what, I'm listening to The Lion King! "But as thick as you are, pay attention! My words are a matter of pride!" Woo! Fun fun! Just got back from speech camp Friday. I had this written, but I was putting off typing it. Lute and Raven made me, though.  
  
It's nice to have people around to yell at you when you're lazy. Woo!  
  
Shout outs:  
  
Klover: Yup! She's just a bitch, ain't she? *pets Oracle's head, but yanks her hand away before she can hurt her* Don't worry, people are around. It's just that there's so MANY, it hard to mention everyone is a chapter without messing it up. And I wanna introduce people a little bit, ya know. You're gonna be big in the next chappie though.shhh, don't tell anyone I told you *shifty eyes*  
  
Stage: Violence. Fun. Woo.  
  
Demon: Suuuuure. We all know you're an angel, lol. Happy pills are uber- spiffy, aren't they?  
  
Wild Card: Whoot. That was fun. The mug just goes Wheeeee! And conks her on the back of her head. Hehehehe.  
  
Deanie: Pulitzer makes them dress funny cause he's a weirdo. Well, that's not entirey it, but eh, you'lll find out laaaaater. *evil grin*  
  
Artemis-chan: A little rough. Eh, what can you do? Besides write it so that people are nice to her.hehehe that's rich. I crack myself up. I'm so mean. 


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, Shamrock, Raven, Demon or Wild Card. I own Oracle, though. The girl amuses me to no end.  
  
A/N: Ah! Short chapter! I just wrote an 18 page chapter for 'I Say Speech Team, You Say WHAT?!", so I'm all pooped out ^_^. But enjoy anyway. -------------  
  
Around 5 in the morning, infuriated screaming woke me up.  
  
I hate these people- well, some are okay, but most of them make me wish I was dead and buried six feet under. Preferably seven.  
  
More screaming. Maybe eight feet of dirt would do better. Anything to get away from these nutcases.  
  
I got up and walked down the stairs. There was no way I could sleep through that- I might as well figure out what in the hell was going on.  
  
But when I got down the stairs, it was all over. I sighed, mourning for my loss of sleep but knowing there was no way in hell I'd get back to sleep, and walked up to Shamrock.  
  
"What the hell was going on?"  
  
She shrugged. "Raven tried to kill Jack again."  
  
I felt my eyes grow to roughly the size of saucers. "What happened? Is everyone okay?" I asked scanning the room for either of them.  
  
Wait? I care about what happened to them?  
  
Shamrock shook her head. "You're not going to find them in here. They're snogging in one of the storerooms. Or maybe the kitchen."  
  
Damn. Those kids must be bi-polar or schizophrenic or something. Not many people can be homicidal one moment and incredibly horny the next.  
  
'Cept those psycho dudes you hear about on the news.  
  
Great, now I'm left wondering what kind of people I'm working with.  
  
"We cook FOOD in here!" Specs screamed from the kitchen.  
  
"Ah." Shamrock grinned. "Found 'em."  
  
My eyes widened. "I'm never eating here again."  
  
Shamrock shrugged. "That's too bad for you. Those two boys can cook."  
  
We were quiet for a second, both of us leaning against the bar  
  
"You seen Lute or Oracle?" I asked nervously, remember the conversation I had heard only five hours ago.  
  
"Lute's in her weekly meeting with Pulitzer. Oracle's off somewhere with Pie. Or maybe Swifty. One of the two."  
  
"Pleasant image."  
  
"It's not a problem, kid." She clapped me on the back as she turned to leave. "I'm glad to be of service."  
  
Great. Now they've got a sense of humor.  
  
What's next? Modesty? Or- god forbid- kindness? From most of them, especially Oracle, that would be-  
  
Speak of the devil.  
  
Oracle walked down the stairs, arms crossed, and stood in front of me- blocking me from joining the others with all five feet-two inches of her.  
  
"Kyle. We need to talk."  
  
"I'd rather-"  
  
"Now."  
  
Damn. I'm dead.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Allll righty.  
  
Everyone in this has to remind me who I said they got. Cause I forgot *eeps*  
  
Anyway, here's some shout outs for the last chapter. Have fun, kids, and don't drink and drive.  
  
Raven: You're a loser. That's all I gotta say ^_^.  
  
Phoenix: Brilliant? You're my new best friend. And you are so right. Cameos rule. I love cameos, cause than you're just like "OOH! It's ME!' or "Ooh! It's ____!"It's very fun ^_^  
  
Thistle: *reads review* D'oh! *slaps forehead* Er.he.uh.got better? Ah, I need to fix that now. Thanks for alerting me to that!  
  
RacetracksGambler: Crazy stuff is the funnest stuff. Funnest isn't a word, but oh well! I like it. ^_^  
  
Wild Card: FORKS! YEAH! *poke*  
  
Stage: hehehehehe. Mysterious is fun. Yay mysterious. And it's just gonna get more mysterious! Oh, so much FUN!  
  
Demon: Happy pills DO rock, dude! Don't hide it! Hahaha yeah Jack's a dork. ^_^ Just don't tell Raven I said that, okay?  
  
Morning Dew: Send me more info on that contest (if its still going on) at Fea Uf Este@aol.com, cause I can't yours to work. Thanks for the complement!  
  
Aretmis-chan: Just watching. But it's more fun that working! Everyone's back, but there'll be clearing up on those happenings soon.it just takes a while for Kyle to catch on to things *evil grin*  
  
Amazon: Thankies. *laughs* That Raven. 


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies.  
  
A/N: Another short chapter.it's all that's coming for this ficcie. Be grateful you're getting anything, girlies! My muses ran off on me.*glares* And it was all Pie!Muse's idea. He's jealous that I'm on a Dante Brisco/Rufio fix right now.  
  
Stupid boy. *glares in the direction the Muses ran off in*  
  
*cries* Did he have to take EVERY ONE?! The only one he left is Swifty!Muse. And he's worthless.  
  
*Swifty!Muse dances* *Swifty!Muse strikes a pose*  
  
That's ALL he does. *pokes him with a fork*  
  
Grrr. Type the chapter now.  
  
------- I meekly followed Oracle into the kitchen. She gave Dutchy and another guy (Definitely Specs, though I hadn't met him before) a look, and they left quietly.  
  
Oracle picked up a butcher's knife and played with it, apparently collecting her thoughts.  
  
I just hoped none of those thoughts involved me being the new sheath for that thing.  
  
I'm allergic to pointy objects.  
  
Oracle cleared her throat, and I snapped back to attention.  
  
"Kyle. Kid. I'm gonna be brief."  
  
Then get to the point.  
  
I didn't say that.  
  
"You don't go snooping around here. There are things that, if I find out you know, I wouldn't hesitate to drive this knife into your head. Blunt side first." She waved the knife around, as if proving a point that I understood very well.  
  
"Mind your own business, kid. That's life's number one rule." She growled, advancing on me. I backed up against the counter, and swallowed nervously.  
  
In one quick motion, she stabbed the knife into the cabinet- no more than three inches from my head. "And those who disobey it often won't live to make the mistake twice."  
  
She blinked, as if regaining her senses. "Specs is gonna kill me." She muttered, glancing at the knife, then walking out.  
  
That would be enough of a warning for normal, intelligent people.  
  
But I'm not normal. And I'm sure as hell not intelligent.  
  
So I'm determined to figure out just what the hell is going on with these people.  
  
------ Ah, that's all. So far.  
  
Aha! I smell a plot! It has arrived *grins insanely* 


End file.
